Chapter 168: The Hundred Schools of Thought
After everything was back on track, Tian Ze had more and more free time.
Most of the things in his stomach that are suitable for this era have been taken out, and various systems have been basically established. What remains is to find and fill in the gaps and carry out appropriate reforms based on development.
When he had nothing to do, Tian Ze would wander around. In addition to getting to know the people, giving speeches, reviewing military parades, winning over the hearts of the people and the army, and screening out people with bad intentions and catching corrupt officials, he would also stay at the Jixia Academy.
As the world became peaceful and the reputation of the Jixia Academy spread, more and more scholars chose to join it.
The noble families in the world are not stupid, and they may not think anything of it at first.
But when they discovered that a large number of people from the south and the Central Plains were attracted by Tian Ze, and that Tian Ze had seemingly endless money and food in his hands, they understood what this guy was like.
Combined with past battle records, it is almost impossible to defeat Tian Ze as long as he does not commit suicide.
Therefore, more and more heroes in their clan chose to visit the Jixia Academy.
Today, the Jixia Academy is no longer as deserted as it was in the beginning. Thousands of scholars gather there, and the place is filled with a constant flow of people and an academic atmosphere.
Tian Ze took Zhang Zhao and strolled there under the protection of Dian Wei. They listened to the sound of reading and watched a few scholars arguing with saliva flying, which was very interesting.
The scholars around had long been accustomed to it, and even no longer felt afraid when they saw Dian Wei.
Occasionally, Tian Ze would go to the school to listen to classes, visit the Baijia Pavilion and their respective academies to see if there were any new things, and go to the martial arts arena to watch the scholars compete or even fight in groups.
As a scholar in the Han Dynasty, being able to fight is a basic quality. One must convince people with both reason and force.
Often the two sides cannot decide who will win the debate in the Forum, so apart from trying their physical strength and exhausting their energy, they choose to practice on the martial arts stage.
The one who can stand till the end is the winner.
The Jixia Academy strictly prohibited private fighting. Violators would be expelled from the academy directly. However, the academy also had a martial arts stage, a place specifically for scholars to solve problems with force.
There are special guards watching to ensure that no major problems arise, making it convenient for these scholars to fight.
It has to be said that these scholars from all over the world have a family background of learning and are of extraordinary quality. They even have quite a few tactics when fighting.
Sometimes Tian Ze looked at some of the soldiers with good qualities and felt that they might not be able to win against them.
Among those who fought most fiercely, one of them was called Xu Shu.
Tian Ze not only gave the scholars of the Jixia Academy lenient and generous treatment, but also did not force them to join his rule. He allowed them to defect to the princes in the Central Plains, and prepared to build the Jixia Academy into a pure academic institution independent of the world.
Therefore, as more and more scholars came to the Jixia Academy and the academic atmosphere became stronger and stronger, its reputation gradually spread. In addition, with the sincere invitation of Lu Zhi and Zhang Zhao, many famous people from all over the world gradually came, even hidden bigwigs such as Sima Hui and Pang Degong.
Tian Ze was delighted. He said, "You just need to come. You can live in seclusion if you want to, or teach if you want to."
For this purpose, Tian Ze specially cleaned up a large area of mountains in the north of Ji County as a place for people like Pang Degong who were indifferent to fame and fortune to live in seclusion, and prohibited outsiders from disturbing them.
Tian Ze is well aware of the importance of culture, which is the soul of the Han people, so he does his best to support it.
"Zi Bu, there are a lot more scholars coming here recently! I think the Hundred Schools Academy is a lot more lively than before. You've worked so hard!"
Compared with Confucian scholars, Tian Ze attaches equal importance to students from various schools of thought.
Only by competing with each other and colliding ideas can we inspire inspiration and extract the essence.
During the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, a hundred schools of thought contended with each other, which greatly elevated the ideological foundation of the entire world.
Whether it is Confucianism, Legalism or Military Science, the core ideas were almost all formed during that period.
Confucianism's benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom and trustworthiness, and education for all, Legalism's combination of tactics and power, and ruling the country by law, Mohism's universal love, non-aggression, and equality for all, Taoism's compliance with nature, and ruling by inaction, Military strategists' military theories and war strategies, and strategists' maneuvering and judging the situation...
That is why Tian Ze wants to do his best to recreate that era.
Although he was unable to create many of the political and social conditions of the time, he did his best to meet them in terms of economy and culture.
Only when all schools of thought flourish can Confucianism make better progress. This is not only an excuse for Tian Ze to appease Confucian scholars, but also what Tian Ze really thinks.
Only by combining Confucianism on the outside and Legalism on the inside, taking into account all schools of thought, and adopting the stability of Confucianism, the efficiency of Legalism, and the flexibility and supplementation of all schools of thought, can we better create a prosperous age.
Hearing Tian Ze's praise, Zhang Zhao was a little embarrassed: "My lord, actually this situation is not Zhao's credit, but..." Zhang Zhao paused slightly, he didn't know how to express it more appropriately.
In fact, what he did was very limited. Although he invited some great scholars and hermits, he did not bring many scholars.
The reason why countless scholars flocked here during this period was entirely the result of the internal competition among the Hundred Schools of Thought.
Just when Zhang Zhao didn't know how to explain, the two of them had already arrived at the Discussion Pavilion.
When he opened the door to a hall, Tian Ze was stunned.
Hundreds of scholars were lined up on the two sides of the stands, and eight people in the middle were sitting opposite each other and arguing.
"The ruler is the ruler, the minister is the minister, the father is the father, the son is the son. Such a strict hierarchy will allow the strong to bully the weak, the ruler can do whatever he wants, and no atrocities can be stopped. Isn't the so-called benevolence of Confucianism a fallacy?" said a Mohist scholar indignantly.
"If everyone is equal, then how can scholars like us be equal to the common people, and how can the emperor be equal to the common people? Do we have to listen to the fools just because there are more of them? The so-called Mohist doctrine of advocating equality is ultimately to make everyone in the world listen to the emperor. How can we talk about equality? It is even more contradictory to the doctrine of universal love!" A Confucian scholar also refuted.
……
Watching this scene, Tian Ze suddenly felt like he was watching a college debate. Both sides paid no attention to Tian Ze's arrival and kept exchanging blows back and forth.
Whenever one party made a brilliant rebuttal, the scholars watching from behind would applaud. There were also respected scholars who presided over and scored the arguments.
This was the rule set by Tian Ze at the beginning. There must be rules for arguments. You can't just quarrel randomly, and you can't say whoever speaks the loudest is right. Otherwise, you will definitely win if you let some donkeys come over.
Tian Ze simply modified the approach used by later debate teams slightly.
Watching the debate between the two sides with great interest, Tian Ze felt that he had gained a lot.
This kind of debate is like the debate of "If you are not a fish, how do you know the joy of a fish?" It is very interesting and wonderful.
Although it seems to be useless and meaningless, it can give people good inspiration and thinking, allowing people to look at problems from more perspectives, activate thinking, temper ideas, and enlighten wisdom.
The two sides exchanged sharp words, and in the end, Confucianism gained a slight upper hand. However, Mohism did not lose too badly. However, a group of scholars looked resentful.
Only after it was over did Tian Ze come to his senses. He felt that he had gained a lot and seemed to have a better understanding of state governance.
Zhang Zhao sighed and said, "My lord, this is the situation."
"Now there are dozens of such debates in the Academy every day, and they are all large-scale, with dozens of people at the least and hundreds at the most. Almost all scholars participate in them, and each represents his own theory. If they win, it's fine, but if they lose, they have to call for help if they are not convinced."
"Confucianism has always been in the upper hand because of its large number of members and its profound accumulation over the past hundreds of years, so even the other schools of thought are dissatisfied."
"At the beginning, the number of people from the Hundred Schools of Thought who came was only a few hundred in total. In the past six months, because of the debate, the number has increased several times. The total number of people is more than that of the Confucianists."
"In particular, Dong Zhao also established a list of 100 inheritance families, which not only ranked the 100 families based on credits, debate performance, etc., but also listed the so-called inheritance family rankings."
"As a result, the fight is now even more intense. Both sides are fighting back and forth, and the Confucians have also started to call for help. The hundreds of schools of thought have also begun to compete with each other, and each school is still fighting for the position of orthodoxy."
"Now there is no need for me and Master Zigan to call for help. Scholars from all over the world come to the Jixia Academy on their own initiative. Some of them come here not to study, but purely to prove themselves."
Speaking of this, Zhang Zhao couldn't help but sigh.
Even if people can avoid the desire for fame and fortune, they still have the affection for relatives and friends, the inheritance of schools of thought, the desire to win, etc.
The Jixia Academy, a relatively fair yet isolated environment for studying and communicating, was almost fatally attractive to scholars.
When the number of scholars arriving reaches a certain level, it will have a huge radiation effect.
Which scholar doesn't have a few relatives, friends, and teachers? When good things happen, they naturally want to share them. When their own theories are belittled, they naturally call on their family members to seek redress.
Especially the so-called inheritance list of the Hundred Schools. It would be fine if it was just a mess, but in order to make a name for himself, Dong Zhao specifically asked Cai Yong to take charge of the matter. The rules were open, transparent and relatively reasonable, forcing people from the Hundred Schools to face them and fight for their reputation.
In this way, the number of scholars in the Jixia Academy increased.
Some people from the Hundred Schools of Thought who originally just wanted to test the waters had to be dragged in. If they didn't come, their own theories would be suppressed and become obsolete.
(End of this chapter)
